Unemployment for disabled reaches four-year low

January 25, 2013|By Marcia Heroux Pounds, Sun Sentinel

The unemployment rate for people with disabilities reached its lowest level in four years in the final quarter of 2012, according to Allsup, a nationwide provider of services for the disabled. The analysis is based on U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics data.

The unemployment rate averaged 12.4 percent for people with disabilities and 7.3 percent for people with no disabilities in the fourth quarter.

The declining unemployment trend follows that of the general population. In Florida, rate averaged 8.2 percent from October to December.

However, the rate of unemployment for people with disabilities was still 70 percent higher than those with no disabilities, Allsup said.

There are more than 532,000 adults who have disabilities in South Florida, according to Goodwill Industries.

In Broward County, nearly 37 percent of disabled workers were unemployed, according to the 2010 Census.